States Get More Discretion to Register Juveniles on Sex Registries

WASHINGTON — New federal guidelines aim to make it easier for states to show they are registering juveniles convicted of certain sex offenses.

The Department of Justice this week released final guidance that says states will have greater flexibility to show they are in compliance with the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).

SORNA, part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, requires states to include on sex offender registries juveniles who are 14 or older and adjudicated delinquent for serious sex offenses. If states do not, they lose federal grant money. The law also includes registration requirements for adult sex offenders.

Under the new guidance, if a state is not in “exact conformity” with the law’s provisions, federal officials will consider other factors that show whether a state’s discretionary policies still meet the requirements.

For example, officials will consider how states:

prosecute juveniles as adults for sex crimes;

register juveniles adjudicated delinquent for sex crimes;

identify, track, monitor or manage adjudicated juveniles in the community; and

keep records of adjudicated juveniles as needed for public safety purposes.

“This expansion recognizes that jurisdictions may adopt myriad robust measures to protect the public from serious juvenile sex offenders, and will help to promote and facilitate jurisdictions' substantial implementation of all aspects of SORNA,” the guidance said.

Registering juveniles for sex offenses is a controversial practice, one that many advocates and researchers say is harmful to youth and counter to public safety. Of the comments submitted on the guidance before it was finalized, none supported a stricter interpretation of the law, and many pushed for Justice to go further or eliminate juvenile registration entirely.

Since SORNA took effect, Justice has periodically loosened the juvenile registration requirements to encourage compliance. But the department can go only so far without running afoul of the requirements of the law, a situation officials noted in the guidance. Pittman said that points to the need for modification to the Adam Walsh Act.

“It’s really loud and clear this is as far as we can go,” she said.

In May, a subcommittee of the Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice, which makes proposals to Congress and the White House, recommended that all juveniles who were under 18 at the time they committed a sex offense should be exempt from all sex offender registration, community notification and residency restriction laws.

In comments, youth advocates and researchers also said they have concerns the guidelines will encourage state practices that run counter to reforms that recognize youth are different than adults.

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